UP to Create District Drug Control Officer Posts; CM Pushes for Transparent Recruitment

Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Friday ordered the Department of Food Safety and Drug Administration to strengthen its regulatory framework amid a shortage of drug inspectors across the state. The CM has directed officials to increase the number of drug inspectors by two times.

It means he has asked the authority to create a new post of District Drug Control Officer to ensure tighter monitoring and inspections at the district level, according to a report in The Times of India.

Currently, Uttar Pradesh has only 109 drug inspectors, which, according to the department, "is inadequate from the perspective of Govt of India standards." The directive came during a review meeting convened after reports of several child deaths linked to spurious cough syrups in at least two states.

To ensure a more credible recruitment process, Yogi Adityanath emphasized that the selection of new inspectors should be "transparent, impartial and quality-oriented." The state government will now switch to a written examination-based recruitment system instead of relying solely on interviews.

The Chief Minister further stressed, "A proper deployment of drug inspectors should be ensured in all districts, and an effective supervision and time-bound inspection system should be implemented at the district level. Making the drug inspection system in the state in accordance with national standards is extremely necessary from a public health perspective."

During the meeting, officials also discussed restructuring higher positions within the drug control cadre. The CM approved proposals to increase the number of Deputy Commissioner (Drug) posts and to amend the qualifying service requirements for promotion to the post of Joint Commissioner (Drug).

Yogi Adityanath Approves Increase In Financial Powers For PWD Engineers In 2023

Meanwhile, a significant update in the financial authority of PWD engineers has been approved, marking the first change in 30 years. Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath led a meeting where it was decided to increase the financial powers of chief, superintendent, executive, and junior engineers across civil, mechanical, and electrical departments by two to five times.

The revision aims to boost administrative efficiency and ensure timely project completion while maintaining financial discipline. The CM highlighted that this reform would enhance transparency and accountability within departmental operations. By granting more autonomy to officers, the need for higher-level approvals is reduced, speeding up processes like tendering and contracting.